UPDATE: Squaw Valley/Alpine Meadows is now Palisades Tahoe: www.peakrankings.com/content/squaw-valley-alpine-meadows-officially-renamed-palisades-tahoe
Good, balanced review but “inconsistent snow conditions” can be said for all Lake Tahoe resorts. Even when there aren’t drought conditions, the snow can be wet, “sierra cement”.
I've skied Squaw for 35+ years and think you did a very fair review. The gondola connecting Squaw and Alpine will be a massive improvement for beginners and intermediates staying near the Squaw base area. For advanced/expert skiers it's a very large resort when Silverado and Broken Arrow are open - it's all about getting off the groomed pistes as you did. Unfortunately for the past several years Squaw on a powder day has been a catastrophe.
Squaw offers a wide variety of exposures (N-S-E-W) at varying altitudes that allow the skier to "follow the sun" (or avoid it) to find optimum snow conditions for different times of day.
Im a season pass holder at squaw/alpine and have been for several years. I think this review is the best one I have ever heard. Some of the comments made about the snow/wind can be said for every resort in the area. Also I agree that the lifts need to be upgraded.
I have been skiing Squaw/Alpine for 50 years. Squaw is probably the best expert mountains in the world. Alpine is an excellent intermediate/advance mountain. Both have some of the best views of any ski resorts in N. America. Rocky Mountain resorts are rather mundane by comparison. I remember twenty years ago skiing with a visitor and he remarked, "Why would you want to go anywhere else?" It struck me as being quite true.
I grew up skiing on the east coast. I went to Squaw for three years in a row and I was still discovering new ways and places to ski there. Best mountain and when I came back east, could barely have the desire to ski at resorts I had grown up with because Squaw was just so damn good. Out here in the east Stowe is great as is Sugarbush. But nothing compares to Squaw.
Another excellent video! You give a good feel for the place. Another nice feature at Squaw: there is an “easiest way down“ sign at the top of each lift which is useful for those who want to dip their toe without committing to the more extreme terrain.
Palisades is my home mountain and I think Silverado should be a Double Black Diamond. It's so steep, rocky and just straight Savage! people have died on that run! I think it's the best mountain to learn on because of big blue express. Though the name is Big Blue, it's actually a green run that's really fun and once you master that, Shirley Lake or Gold coast is a more than perfect progression path.
Gold Coast -> resort chair -> Shirley was what I did. I see many low intermediates tend to go to Shirley pretty early. However, trails served by Shirley tend to be steeper blues and the trail right next to the lift get bumped up quickly. They aren’t really ideal for practicing carving or general progression.
Nice video Back in the early 70’s when I was a kid the long squaw peak lift chairs did have a plexiglass bubble. That only lasted a season or two and they where removed
I’m about to start making similar videos! I had the idea as I was touring the countries resorts this season :) nice job! Cool to see I wasn’t the only one with the idea and nice to say I found your channel while it’s still small!
They held the 1960 Olympics at Squaw.... I grew up with and remember the Olympic Ice skating ring. Now torn down and parking lot. Back in the early 80's... watched crews of guys for days working on that roof to get the snow off.... Squaw is a melange.... The uber rich, fancy panters. And the locals, people who love it.....
The top of squaw is 9050 but you have to hike to get there. The highest chair lift is 8700 feet in elevation. The base is 6200 and about 50% of the time it rains at the base because it is so low.
Not sure why they say Squaw is "high alpine". Major peak TOPS are 8,100 (KT-22), 8,850 (Palisades), 8,770 (Emigrant) and 9,000 (Granite Chief). Main Lodge BASE at Mammoth is 8900' and the top is 11,000'+ The base at Squaw is problematically low for CA, at 6200'. I have been rained on at the bottom of Square more times that I care to remember.
We went there this season and will certainly be doing a written review in the coming weeks! Some mountain areas did not open this year, so the video review may take another season.
WAS THIS ONE THE MORMON OLYMPICS WHERE THEY WERE WORRIED ABOUT THEIR IMAGE DAY AND NIGHT FOR TWO WEEKS DAY AND NIGHT SCREWED FOR HUNDREDS OF YEARS AND MITT ROMNEY WOULD LOSE OR WAS THAT UTAH?
Alpine Meadows! We score Squaw better for size, terrain diversity, navigation, facilities, and mountain aesthetic, but Alpine trumps in crowd flow (by a substantial margin), snow quality, and resiliency. Since the resorts are going to be combined next season, there probably won't be a tie anymore 😉
@@PeakRankings I really enjoy Alpine but do find myself at Squaw more often. They do offer a bit of a different experience and I look forward to being able to ride both in the same day via the new gondola. I do think this will increase the number of people at Alpine though so I hope they have some future lift upgrades planned to accommodate for this.
Hey guys, heads up-as a result of our recent Mountain Score recalibrations, Squaw Valley is now our sole #1 resort in Tahoe, and Alpine Meadows has dropped to a tie for 2nd place with Heavenly. Updates to our facilities, terrain diversity, size, and challenge methodologies intended to provide more fair and useful information about each resort produced this change.
Grooming on the Olympic Valley side is much worse than the Alpine side, or compared to other major resorts. Part of that has to do with the inability to groom many steep areas, but there are many runs that could be groomed but seldom are. Siberia Ridge into Racers is a good example. A six pack chair with just two narrow groomers! Other examples are Rainbow Bowl on Solitude, Attic off Emigrant, Cornice Bowl on Headwall, Spring Hill off Mtn Run, Valley View and Montezuma on the Resort chair. Alpine, on the other hand, grooms Alpine bowl super wide, Wolverine Bowl, Sunspot, D8 chute, Yellow trail, etc. on a regular basis. I prefer ungroomed, but when it hasn't snowed in two weeks, it can get pretty rough. Not really sure why they are so weak in that category, especially when other resorts owned by the same company do so much better.
@@mushieslushie ummm how bout better than Whistler, Jackson Hole, Snowbird Alta and Portillo, Las Lenas, oh and even Chamonix, Verbier, Val d'Isere, and even La Grave. So yes just please stay away.
I think you covered the mountain very well. Squaw certainly has something for everyone, but the terrain is significantly geared towards the more advanced skier interested in a more 'freeride' style. If you want nice long groomed runs it is certainly not the place.
Alpine Meadows is a good source of longer groomers though. The gondola isn't finished yet, but there's a connector shuttle - or on a multi-day trip you can divvy up your days between the two.
The good stuff at Squaw is up high....Mountain road to the bottom.... It will nut you up if you are a beginner.... Squaw Creek is down low.. The snow down there is sparse....
on good snow days, if you're an expert skier/racer, Squaw is amazing, the avalanche chutes, great Olympic lady and Red dog terrain, headwall, etc, no doubt, but unless you're an over-eager, minimal skilled teenager who likes getting beat-up, stay away, crap long runs, terrible crowds, there are far better places on a day-by-day basis, including Alpine and Northstar's backside and lookout mountain. And to be clear, Squaw doesn't need your business and they let you know that.
Been skiing/riding there for 20+ years, and have to say, the mountain run is consistently my least favorite experience each season. Beginners everywhere. That or Granite's Chair. Sometimes it's a nice break in the action on a sunny day, though.
Common Tater 0 seconds ago t's incredible. Nobody is saying that there's anything wrong with the new name, just that they can't stand the fact that it will no longer bear a name that some of our fellow human beings -- descendants of the original inhabitants -- regard as an insult. Wake up, people. The world's in motion.
The only people concerned about the traditional Algonquin word for woman that was mistranslated to apply to all native women, are virtue signaling white liberals who've probably never spoken to a native person in their life. BTW the valley itself for which the ski area was named is still called Squaw on all regional maps
@@commontater8630 It has the same meaning regardless of who its used by, I guess in your world its only racist if a white person uses it, which in itself is a racist attitude but thats typical of you perpetually offended leftists. While I suppose there are a few natives who are offended by it I ve yet to meet them, and I am of partial native decent myself. Meanwhile I will continue to use its proper name if nothing else just to irritate folks like you who want to erase history.
@@ST19859 Wake up! It does NOT have the same meaning 'regardless of who its (sic) used by'. Do you think that's true of the N word? When you say you are of 'partial native decent (sic) myself', I smell a rat. And even if it's true, so what? You don't speak for all those who have standing in the matter, and ARE offended. You call the name in contention its 'proper' name: what a joke. There's nothing 'proper' about it other than you saying it is. A HUGE part of history boils down to how it is told, and who tells it. History is not monolithic, it is told from many different points of view. There is much more to history than place names, which undergo changes over time for a variety of reasons. If your goal in life is to irritate people, I will say this: you sir are a pissant.
@@commontater8630 My goal in life is not to irritate people but if I happen to irritate attention seeking, history destroying leftists like yourself it does bring me a smile. You can doubt my heritage all you want but it doesnt change who my grandmother was and I could care less what someone like you believes anyway. As far as the proper name of Squaw Valley if you knew anything of the local history (theres that awful word again you people hate) You might know that the particular geographical location has been named that since it was discovered in the early 1850s. It was so named because its where the Washoe tribes women and children stayed while the men were hunting through the summer. As I previously mentioned and you of course ignored, that is the official USGS name and is still listed as such on all local maps that I can think of, hence the PROPER name for the place, which the resort also happened to carry the name of for 70 damn years You can try and gaslight everyone with your BS about history being fluid and depending on who is telling it but thats all it is ...typical BS tactics from the fascist left. But keep up the virtue signaling, I m sure plenty of your liberal pals will continue to preen over your enlightened state.
UPDATE: Squaw Valley/Alpine Meadows is now Palisades Tahoe: www.peakrankings.com/content/squaw-valley-alpine-meadows-officially-renamed-palisades-tahoe
Good, balanced review but “inconsistent snow conditions” can be said for all Lake Tahoe resorts. Even when there aren’t drought conditions, the snow can be wet, “sierra cement”.
I've skied Squaw for 35+ years and think you did a very fair review. The gondola connecting Squaw and Alpine will be a massive improvement for beginners and intermediates staying near the Squaw base area. For advanced/expert skiers it's a very large resort when Silverado and Broken Arrow are open - it's all about getting off the groomed pistes as you did. Unfortunately for the past several years Squaw on a powder day has been a catastrophe.
Great comprehensive review. The on slope footage gives you the true conditions you will face.
Squaw offers a wide variety of exposures (N-S-E-W) at varying altitudes that allow the skier to "follow the sun" (or avoid it) to find optimum snow conditions for different times of day.
Im a season pass holder at squaw/alpine and have been for several years. I think this review is the best one I have ever heard. Some of the comments made about the snow/wind can be said for every resort in the area. Also I agree that the lifts need to be upgraded.
I have been skiing Squaw/Alpine for 50 years. Squaw is probably the best expert mountains in the world. Alpine is an excellent intermediate/advance mountain. Both have some of the best views of any ski resorts in N. America. Rocky Mountain resorts are rather mundane by comparison. I remember twenty years ago skiing with a visitor and he remarked, "Why would you want to go anywhere else?" It struck me as being quite true.
I grew up skiing on the east coast. I went to Squaw for three years in a row and I was still discovering new ways and places to ski there. Best mountain and when I came back east, could barely have the desire to ski at resorts I had grown up with because Squaw was just so damn good. Out here in the east Stowe is great as is Sugarbush. But nothing compares to Squaw.
Ive been saying this for years. The Rockies may have the best snow by a long shot but the sierras are easily the best terrain.
Been waiting for this one!
Another excellent video! You give a good feel for the place. Another nice feature at Squaw: there is an “easiest way down“ sign at the top of each lift which is useful for those who want to dip their toe without committing to the more extreme terrain.
Thank you!
Palisades is my home mountain and I think Silverado should be a Double Black Diamond. It's so steep, rocky and just straight Savage! people have died on that run! I think it's the best mountain to learn on because of big blue express. Though the name is Big Blue, it's actually a green run that's really fun and once you master that, Shirley Lake or Gold coast is a more than perfect progression path.
Gold Coast -> resort chair -> Shirley was what I did. I see many low intermediates tend to go to Shirley pretty early. However, trails served by Shirley tend to be steeper blues and the trail right next to the lift get bumped up quickly. They aren’t really ideal for practicing carving or general progression.
Nice video
Back in the early 70’s when I was a kid the long squaw peak lift chairs did have a plexiglass bubble.
That only lasted a season or two and they where removed
I’m about to start making similar videos! I had the idea as I was touring the countries resorts this season :) nice job! Cool to see I wasn’t the only one with the idea and nice to say I found your channel while it’s still small!
They held the 1960 Olympics at Squaw.... I grew up with and remember the Olympic Ice skating ring. Now torn down and parking lot. Back in the early 80's... watched crews of guys for days working on that roof to get the snow off.... Squaw is a melange.... The uber rich, fancy panters.
And the locals, people who love it.....
what's funny is they only managed to get the olympics to host there by lying about the mountain
@@ladder3257 It's called marketing, and Alex was very good at it.
The top of squaw is 9050 but you have to hike to get there. The highest chair lift is 8700 feet in elevation. The base is 6200 and about 50% of the time it rains at the base because it is so low.
thank you for calling it sqaw valley
Yes! Finally the mountain that everyone says "they'll go to next season" 😂
Not sure why they say Squaw is "high alpine". Major peak TOPS are 8,100 (KT-22), 8,850 (Palisades), 8,770 (Emigrant) and 9,000 (Granite Chief). Main Lodge BASE at Mammoth is 8900' and the top is 11,000'+ The base at Squaw is problematically low for CA, at 6200'. I have been rained on at the bottom of Square more times that I care to remember.
You should do a review on Sugar Bowl!
Pleaseeeee
We went there this season and will certainly be doing a written review in the coming weeks! Some mountain areas did not open this year, so the video review may take another season.
You should do mount. Rose some sometime
We'll have a review of Mt. Rose up in the coming months!
I hope to go to Squaw Valley some day.
Silverado chair.....The lower elevations have a lot of snowmaking... Squaw Creek and Red Dog....
stupid question but why a ski lift named broken arrow lift ?
Red dog has been upgraded this year
Palisades Tahoe? What's that?
WAS THIS ONE THE MORMON OLYMPICS WHERE THEY WERE WORRIED ABOUT THEIR IMAGE DAY AND NIGHT FOR TWO WEEKS DAY AND NIGHT SCREWED FOR HUNDREDS OF YEARS AND MITT ROMNEY WOULD LOSE
OR WAS THAT UTAH?
What resort is it tied with for best in Lake Tahoe? (The description says tied 1st out of 7)
Alpine Meadows! We score Squaw better for size, terrain diversity, navigation, facilities, and mountain aesthetic, but Alpine trumps in crowd flow (by a substantial margin), snow quality, and resiliency. Since the resorts are going to be combined next season, there probably won't be a tie anymore 😉
@@PeakRankings I really enjoy Alpine but do find myself at Squaw more often. They do offer a bit of a different experience and I look forward to being able to ride both in the same day via the new gondola. I do think this will increase the number of people at Alpine though so I hope they have some future lift upgrades planned to accommodate for this.
Hey guys, heads up-as a result of our recent Mountain Score recalibrations, Squaw Valley is now our sole #1 resort in Tahoe, and Alpine Meadows has dropped to a tie for 2nd place with Heavenly. Updates to our facilities, terrain diversity, size, and challenge methodologies intended to provide more fair and useful information about each resort produced this change.
@@PeakRankings heavenly should be last place
@@replicatingsps4118 was thinking about doing a trip out to tahoe next year. What don't you like about heavenly?
You should review Taos!
It's on our bucket list for next season! 😁
Always good to battle snobby rich folk to touch nature first
Grooming on the Olympic Valley side is much worse than the Alpine side, or compared to other major resorts. Part of that has to do with the inability to groom many steep areas, but there are many runs that could be groomed but seldom are. Siberia Ridge into Racers is a good example. A six pack chair with just two narrow groomers! Other examples are Rainbow Bowl on Solitude, Attic off Emigrant, Cornice Bowl on Headwall, Spring Hill off Mtn Run, Valley View and Montezuma on the Resort chair. Alpine, on the other hand, grooms Alpine bowl super wide, Wolverine Bowl, Sunspot, D8 chute, Yellow trail, etc. on a regular basis. I prefer ungroomed, but when it hasn't snowed in two weeks, it can get pretty rough. Not really sure why they are so weak in that category, especially when other resorts owned by the same company do so much better.
Can you please do steamboat springs colorado
Yep. Tune in tomorrow.
Squaw is the best expert mountain in the world. Prove me wrong.
Can I ask what other resorts you have been to?
@@mushieslushie ummm how bout better than Whistler, Jackson Hole, Snowbird Alta and Portillo, Las Lenas, oh and even Chamonix, Verbier, Val d'Isere, and even La Grave. So yes just please stay away.
@@heyzeuschristos4561 I guess you got a new account sometime in the last 4 months?
If you want impressive spring skiing, go to mammoth
I think you covered the mountain very well. Squaw certainly has something for everyone, but the terrain is significantly geared towards the more advanced skier interested in a more 'freeride' style. If you want nice long groomed runs it is certainly not the place.
Alpine Meadows is a good source of longer groomers though. The gondola isn't finished yet, but there's a connector shuttle - or on a multi-day trip you can divvy up your days between the two.
THOSE OLYMPICS WERE 2002 UTAH, MY MISTAKE
The good stuff at Squaw is up high....Mountain road to the bottom.... It will nut you up if you are a beginner.... Squaw Creek is down low.. The snow down there is sparse....
"Palisades" - Squaw/Alpine are not good mountains for intermediates. Gotta be there with good snow, weekdays.
THIS IS MY FAVORITE RESORT? YOURS?
on good snow days, if you're an expert skier/racer, Squaw is amazing, the avalanche chutes, great Olympic lady and Red dog terrain, headwall, etc, no doubt, but unless you're an over-eager, minimal skilled teenager who likes getting beat-up, stay away, crap long runs, terrible crowds, there are far better places on a day-by-day basis, including Alpine and Northstar's backside and lookout mountain. And to be clear, Squaw doesn't need your business and they let you know that.
Been skiing/riding there for 20+ years, and have to say, the mountain run is consistently my least favorite experience each season. Beginners everywhere.
That or Granite's Chair. Sometimes it's a nice break in the action on a sunny day, though.
Lol I agree. I like skiing fast, and all the beginners get in my way
ENJOY THIS RESORT WHILE YOU CAN, A GUY NAMED BIG OIL (WOLF) WILL MAKE SURE MONEY IS MORE IMPORTANT THAN FUTURE SNOW HERE
Get Woke, Go Broke,,,,
Sounds like this is not ideal for newbies.
most overrated mtn is usa only go if you love lines
way too expensive $$$$
Wrong.
Squaw Valley doesn't exist anymore!
Yes it does liberal. I’ll continue saying squaw valley, that’s what it is.
@@pepsicocal262 That was sarcasm, smart guy.
Technically it still does, on topo maps. Cancel culture hasnt gotten to them yet apparently
Common Tater
0 seconds ago
t's incredible. Nobody is saying that there's anything wrong with the new name, just that they can't stand the fact that it will no longer bear a name that some of our fellow human beings -- descendants of the original inhabitants -- regard as an insult. Wake up, people. The world's in motion.
The only people concerned about the traditional Algonquin word for woman that was mistranslated to apply to all native women, are virtue signaling white liberals who've probably never spoken to a native person in their life. BTW the valley itself for which the ski area was named is still called Squaw on all regional maps
@@ST19859 That's total BS. There absolutely are native people that have voiced their opposition to the name AS USED BY WHITE PEOPLE.
@@commontater8630 It has the same meaning regardless of who its used by, I guess in your world its only racist if a white person uses it, which in itself is a racist attitude but thats typical of you perpetually offended leftists.
While I suppose there are a few natives who are offended by it I ve yet to meet them, and I am of partial native decent myself. Meanwhile I will continue to use its proper name if nothing else just to irritate folks like you who want to erase history.
@@ST19859 Wake up! It does NOT have the same meaning 'regardless of who its (sic) used by'. Do you think that's true of the N word?
When you say you are of 'partial native decent (sic) myself', I smell a rat. And even if it's true, so what? You don't speak for all those who have standing in the matter, and ARE offended.
You call the name in contention its 'proper' name: what a joke. There's nothing 'proper' about it other than you saying it is.
A HUGE part of history boils down to how it is told, and who tells it. History is not monolithic, it is told from many different points of view.
There is much more to history than place names, which undergo changes over time for a variety of reasons.
If your goal in life is to irritate people, I will say this: you sir are a pissant.
@@commontater8630 My goal in life is not to irritate people but if I happen to irritate attention seeking, history destroying leftists like yourself it does bring me a smile. You can doubt my heritage all you want but it doesnt change who my grandmother was and I could care less what someone like you believes anyway.
As far as the proper name of Squaw Valley if you knew anything of the local history (theres that awful word again you people hate) You might know that the particular geographical location has been named that since it was discovered in the early 1850s. It was so named because its where the Washoe tribes women and children stayed while the men were hunting through the summer. As I previously mentioned and you of course ignored, that is the official USGS name and is still listed as such on all local maps that I can think of, hence the PROPER name for the place, which the resort also happened to carry the name of for 70 damn years
You can try and gaslight everyone with your BS about history being fluid and depending on who is telling it but thats all it is ...typical BS tactics from the fascist left. But keep up the virtue signaling, I m sure plenty of your liberal pals will continue to preen over your enlightened state.